The Mosley Review: Jay and Silent Bob Reboot

For some time now, the art of a good cameo has been almost completely lost in cinema. The last time we've had a cameo that warms your heart and makes you smile was the great comic book creator Stan Lee in Avengers: Endgame. Luckily there is still one filmmaker that knows how to do cameos while also making each cameo a fun and integral part of the plot. Over 20 years ago, Kevin Smith created the View Askew Cinematic Universe and all of his characters were great. Each story had a heart, a great and wise message behind them and a continuously well timed use of his most famous 2 characters. He used them enough that they got their own fun and ridiculous spin-off. Jay and Silent have been a brilliant duo and I have enjoyed seeing them pop up in many films and even films not from their universe. Their adventures have always been fowl and hilarious, but this was the best one yet and it was an absolute blast! Not only was this adventure self indulgent, but it was a culmination of the entire View Askewniverse in one star studded film. Their version of the Avengers.....if everyone was stoned.

Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith share the screen once again as the dynamic stoner duo Jay and Silent Bob and they've never been better together. These characters spawned from their real life friendship and it shows in their electric chemistry. Kevin Smith gets to have his moments to shine as always, but this film is not his. Jason Mewes is the real star in this film and he delivers an outstanding performance. He takes Jay on a deeper, sometimes mature and emotional journey that many Oscar caliber films wish they had. I was genuinely surprised by his growth as an actor and proud. Harley Quinn Smith was excellent in the film as Millennium "Milly" Faulken. She gets to show off her emotional and sinister range as an actress and it was impressive. There are ALOT of cameos from actors and actresses that have been in all of Kevin Smith's films. I don't want to spoil the surprise so I'll just talk about some of them that I loved. Shannon Elizabeth returns as Justice Faulken and she was lovely. The chemistry between her and Jay was still there after all these years. Jason Lee has not skipped a beat as Brodie Bruce and he was equally elegant in his monologues and his famous song. Justin Long nearly stole a scene in his return as Brandon St. Randy. Ralph Garman was intense and awesome as Ted Underhill. His monologue must've been based off of a real experience because I felt his rage.

The score by James L. Venable was excellent and delivered the emotional punch of important moments. Still to this day, I consider Kevin Smith to be one of the best Indie filmmakers out there and this film has shown that he still has so much more to give. I believe this is one of the best films of his View Askewniverse and by far the best Jay and Silent adventure they've ever had. This is not only a must see for stoners, but if you've ever been a Kevin Smith fan, you owe it yourself to see this film. It is currently streaming Amazon Prime Video and do stick around for the entire credits for a heartwarming cameo. Go watch it!